10 Best Mystery Books Featuring Female Detectives!
Ladies and gentlemen, brace yourselves for a thrilling ride through the realms of crime, mystery, and suspense unmasked by none other than our fiercely brilliant female detectives! Showering confidence, wit, and charisma, they knuckle down to unscramble the riddles and bizarre conundrums that even the sharpest minds failed to crack. We commend these women on their unabashed fearlessness and unapologetic intelligence, which unequivocally redefines the stereotypical chauvinistic detective trope to something more modern, more inspiring.
We're tipping our hats to the 10 of the finest crime novels featuring leading ladies who've got more than just beauty and grace. They’re sure to keep you hooked with well-knit plots, captivating twists, and unpredictable cliffhangers. What sets them apart? Well, it’s the seamless combination of deadpan humor, intuitive instincts, and fearless pursuit of the truth, regardless of where it takes them. As you flip through the pages, you'll find yourself immersed in the depth of their characters, cheering for them wholeheartedly, and turning the lights on – because yeah, these novels might get a tad scary. So, gear up for a roller coaster ride of emotions and adrenaline, and join us in celebration of female instinct, in the pursuit of justice!
『Nancy Drew 01: the Secret of the Old Clock』
Read the original Nancy Drew mystery! The Secret of the Old Clock is the mystery that began it all for America's favorite teenaged slueth. The accidental rescue of a little girl who lives with her two great-aunts leads to an adventurous search for a missing will.
Author | Carolyn Keene |
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Price | unknown |
Publisher | Penguin |
Release Date | May 01, 1930 |
Source | Google Books |
『The Murder at the Vicarage』
The Murder at the Vicarage is Agatha Christie’s first mystery to feature the beloved investigator Miss Marple—as a dead body in a clergyman’s study proves to the indomitable sleuth that no place, holy or otherwise, is a sanctuary from homicide. Miss Marple encounters a compelling murder mystery in the sleepy little village of St. Mary Mead, where under the seemingly peaceful exterior of an English country village lurks intrigue, guilt, deception and death. Colonel Protheroe, local magistrate and overbearing land-owner is the most detested man in the village. Everyone--even in the vicar--wishes he were dead. And very soon he is--shot in the head in the vicar's own study. Faced with a surfeit of suspects, only the inscrutable Miss Marple can unravel the tangled web of clues that will lead to the unmasking of the killer.
Author | Agatha Christie |
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Price | $9.99 |
Publisher | Harper Collins |
Release Date | Mar 17, 2009 |
Source | Google Books |
『The Secret Place』
“An absolutely mesmerizing read. . . . Tana French is simply this: a truly great writer.” —Gillian Flynn Read the New York Times bestseller by Tana French, author of the forthcoming novel The Hunter and “the most important crime novelist to emerge in the past 10 years” (The Washington Post). A year ago a boy was found murdered at a girlsʼ boarding school, and the case was never solved. Detective Stephen Moran has been waiting for his chance to join Dublin’s Murder Squad when sixteen-year-old Holly Mackey arrives in his office with a photo of the boy with the caption: “I KNOW WHO KILLED HIM.” Stephen joins with Detective Antoinette Conway to reopen the case—beneath the watchful eye of Holly’s father, fellow detective Frank Mackey. With the clues leading back to Holly’s close-knit group of friends, to their rival clique, and to the tangle of relationships that bound them all to the murdered boy, the private underworld of teenage girls turns out to be more mysterious and more dangerous than the detectives imagined.
Author | Tana French |
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Price | unknown |
Publisher | Penguin |
Release Date | Aug 04, 2015 |
Source | Google Books |
『Claire DeWitt and the City of the Dead』
From an acclaimed author who “made her bones writing urban noir” a “charmer” of a female sleuth searches for a missing person in post-Katrina New Orleans (New York Times). This knock-out start to a bracingly original new series features Claire DeWitt, the world’s greatest PI—at least, that’s what she calls herself. A follower of the esoteric French detective Jacques Silette, whose mysterious handbook Détection inspired Claire’s unusual investigation practices, Claire has deep roots in New Orleans, where she was mentored by Silette’s student the brilliant Constance Darling—until Darling was murdered. When a respected DA goes missing in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, she returns to the hurricane-ravaged city to find out why—and find herself prowling deep in the city’s criminal underbelly. “What would you get if . . . Lisbeth Salander met up with Jim Sallis’s Lew Griffin walking the back streets of New Orleans? Or Sue Grafton’s Kinsey Millhone transformed herself into a tattooed magnolia driving a 4x4? Clare DeWitt, that’s what you’d get . . . DeWitt’s mesmerizing character and memorable voice take your breath away.” —New Orleans Times-Picayune “[An] auspicious debut of a new mystery series.” —Elle “Reminds me why I fell in love with the genre.” —Laura Lippman, New York Times bestselling author of Prom Mom “I love this book!” —Sue Grafton, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Kinsey Milhone series “Reads . . . as if David Lynch directed a Raymond Chandler novel.” —CNN “Delicious and addictive.” —Salon.com “Not your mother’s girl detective.” —Alafair Burke, New York Times–bestselling author of Long Gone “Captivating.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review
Author | Sara Gran |
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Price | $9.99 |
Publisher | HarperCollins |
Release Date | May 11, 2011 |
Source | Google Books |
『Indemnity Only』
The 30th anniversary edition of the first V. I. Warshawski novel, Indemnity Only, featuring a new afterword from Sara Paretsky Meeting an anonymous client late on a sizzling summer night is asking for trouble. But trouble is Chicago private eye V. I. Warshawski’s specialty. Her client says he’s the prominent banker John Thayer. Turns out he’s not. He says his son’s girlfriend, Anita Hill, is missing. Turns out that’s not her real name. V. I.’s search turns up someone soon enough—the real John Thayer’s son, and he’s dead. Who’s V. I.’s client? Why has she been set up and sent out on a wild-goose chase? By the time she’s got it figured, things are hotter—and deadlier—than Chicago in July. V. I.’s in a desperate race against time. At stake: a young woman’s life.
Author | Sara Paretsky |
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Price | $7.99 |
Publisher | Dell |
Release Date | May 12, 2010 |
Source | Google Books |
『Post Mortem / Postmortem』
Un brutal asesino siembra el pánico en Richmond, Virginia, al amparo de la noche. Tres mujeres han aparecido salvajamente asesinadas en sus propios dormitorios. El responsable de estos crímenes deja muy pocas pistas y actúa siempre los sábados de madrugada. De manera que cuando la doctora Kay Scarpetta, jefa del Departamento de Medicina Legal, recibe una llamada a las dos y media de la mañana, supone que algo grave ha sucedido: hay una cuarta víctima.
Author | Patricia Daniels Cornwell |
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Price | unknown |
Publisher | B de Bolsillo |
Release Date | Jun 01, 2016 |
Source | Google Books |
『Red London』
CIA agent Lyndsey Duncan's newest asset might just be her long-needed confidante...or her greatest betrayal. After her role in taking down a well-placed mole inside the CIA, Agent Lyndsey Duncan arrives in London fully focused on her newest Russian asset, deadly war criminal Dmitri Tarasenko. That is until her MI6 counterpart, Davis Ranford, personally calls for her help. Following a suspicious attack on Russian oligarch Mikhail Rotenberg's property in a tony part of London, Davis needs Lyndsey to cozy up to the billionaire's aristocratic British wife, Emily Rotenberg. Fortunately for Lyndsey, there's little to dissuade Emily from taking in a much-needed confidante. Even being one of the richest women in the world is no guarantee of happiness. But before Lyndsey can cover much ground with her newfound friend, the CIA unveils a perturbing connection between Mikhail and Russia's geoplitical past, one that could upend the world order and jeopardize Lyndsey's longtime allegiance to the Agency. Red London is a sharp and nuanced race-against-the-clock story ripped from today's headlines, a testament to author Alma Katsu’s thirty-five-year career in national security. It’s a rare spy novel written by an insider that feels as prescient as it is page-turning and utterly unforgettable.
Author | Alma Katsu |
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Price | unknown |
Publisher | Penguin |
Release Date | Mar 14, 2023 |
Source | Google Books |
『Dead Dead Girls』
“In this terrific series opener, Afia evokes the women’s lives in all their wayward and beautiful glory, especially the abruptness with which their dreams, hopes and fears cease to exist.”--The New York Times The start of an exciting new historical mystery series set during the Harlem Renaissance from debut author Nekesa Afia Harlem, 1926. Young Black women like Louise Lloyd are ending up dead. Following a harrowing kidnapping ordeal when she was in her teens, Louise is doing everything she can to maintain a normal life. She’s succeeding, too. She spends her days working at Maggie’s Café and her nights at the Zodiac, Harlem’s hottest speakeasy. Louise’s friends, especially her girlfriend, Rosa Maria Moreno, might say she’s running from her past and the notoriety that still stalks her, but don’t tell her that. When a girl turns up dead in front of the café, Louise is forced to confront something she’s been trying to ignore—two other local Black girls have been murdered in the past few weeks. After an altercation with a police officer gets her arrested, Louise is given an ultimatum: She can either help solve the case or wind up in a jail cell. Louise has no choice but to investigate and soon finds herself toe-to-toe with a murderous mastermind hell-bent on taking more lives, maybe even her own....
Author | Nekesa Afia |
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Price | unknown |
Publisher | Penguin |
Release Date | Jun 01, 2021 |
Source | Google Books |
『Missing, Presumed』
A New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice • A page-turning mystery that brings to life a complex and strong-willed detective assigned to a high-risk missing persons case NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY NPR • NAMED ONE OF THE 10 BEST MYSTERIES OF THE YEAR BY THE WALL STREET JOURNAL “An extraordinarily assured police procedural in the tradition of Ruth Rendell and Elizabeth George.”—Joseph Finder, author of The Fixer “Surprise-filled . . . one of the most ambitious police procedurals of the year. Detective Bradshaw’s biting wit is a bonus.”—The Wall Street Journal “Missing, Presumed has future BBC miniseries written all over it.”—Redbook “A highly charismatic and engaging story.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review) “This combination of police procedural and an unfolding family drama that continuously twists and turns will work well for fans of Kate Atkinson and Tana French.”—Booklist At thirty-nine, Manon Bradshaw is a devoted and respected member of the Cambridgeshire police force, and though she loves her job, what she longs for is a personal life. Single and distant from her family, she wants a husband and children of her own. One night, after yet another disastrous Internet date, she turns on her police radio to help herself fall asleep—and receives an alert that sends her to a puzzling crime scene. Edith Hind—a beautiful graduate student at Cambridge University and daughter of the surgeon to the Royal Family—has been missing for nearly twenty-four hours. Her home offers few clues: a smattering of blood in the kitchen, her keys and phone left behind, the front door ajar but showing no signs of forced entry. Manon instantly knows that this case will be big—and that every second is crucial to finding Edith alive. The investigation starts with Edith’s loved ones: her attentive boyfriend, her reserved best friend, her patrician parents. As the search widens and press coverage reaches a frenzied pitch, secrets begin to emerge about Edith’s tangled love life and her erratic behavior leading up to her disappearance. With no clear leads, Manon summons every last bit of her skill and intuition to close the case, and what she discovers will have shocking consequences not just for Edith’s family but for Manon herself. Suspenseful and keenly observed, Missing, Presumed is a brilliantly twisting novel of how we seek connection, grant forgiveness, and reveal the truth about who we are. Praise for Missing, Presumed “Smart, stylish . . . Manon is portrayed with an irresistible blend of sympathy and snark. By the time she hits bottom, professionally and privately, we’re entirely caught up in her story.”—The New York Times Book Review “Nuanced suspense that’s perfect for Kate Atkinson fans.”—People “Drenched in character and setting, with pinpoint detail that breathes life and color into every sentence.”—The News & Observer “You might come to Missing, Presumed for the police procedural; you’ll stay for the layered, authentic characters that Steiner brings to life.”—Bethanne Patrick, NPR “Where [Susie] Steiner excels is in the depth and clarity with which she depicts her characters. . . . It all adds up to a world that feels much bigger than the novel in which it is contained.”—The Guardian
Author | Susie Steiner |
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Price | $12.99 |
Publisher | Random House |
Release Date | Jun 28, 2016 |
Source | Google Books |
『The Sinner』
Investigating the brutal murder of one nun and the critical injury of another within a cloistered convent, medical examiner Maura Isles and homicide detective Jane Rizzoli stumble upon long-buried secrets that link these horrific crimes.
Author | Tess Gerritsen |
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Price | unknown |
Publisher | Random House Digital, Inc. |
Release Date | Jan 01, 2004 |
Source | Google Books |
And there you have it folks - the top 10 mystery novels featuring fearless, compelling, and downright awesome female detectives! Each book brings to the table a smorgasbord of twisted clues, unanticipated plot twists, and gripping narratives that will, without fail, have you on the edge of your seat in suspense. And let’s not forget about our leading ladies, the brilliant sleuths who tackle each cerebral challenge with grace, guts, and a tenacity that's honestly inspiring. They truly steal the spotlight in these novels with their unique blend of intelligence, resilience, and charisma. Remember, whether you're a hardcore mystery connoisseur, or a newbie venturing into the thrilling world of whodunits, these books are perfect for a cozy evening of unwinding or a riveting weekend of binge-reading. So, get ready to dive into these fascinating worlds and remember, trust no one but your female detective. Happy reading!
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